1997 club car ds 48 volt cart still bit slow with brand new batteries
 

I have a 97 club car ds 48 volt I have gotten brand new batteries last week. I have riden the cart some since the new batteries. To me it is still slow compared to my buddies carts they practically leave me in the dust with a sufficient lead even starting with a group of carts. I don't understand. Anyone can help me look into somethings I can check would be great. Thanks ....

Re: 1997 club car ds 48 volt cart still bit slow with brand new batteries
 

Also to add I hear only one click when I press the pedal a little bit to start moving . Then when I press further on the pedal it is silent. Sometimes I have to release the pedal a bit and press it again to make it go just a bit faster that I know it can go. But I am still left in the dust when I ride with my buddies.

Re: 1997 club car ds 48 volt cart still bit slow with brand new batteries
 

First. You have to understand batteries dont mean speed. Batteries = run time. Bigger batteries mean more range.

Speed is determined by current and voltage. Higher current and voltage creates more speed. Speed in an electric cart gets expensive quickly. Upgrading motor will give more speed immediately. But to maximize the potential of the motor you need a high current controller, solenoid, FNR switch, and cables.

You could start with cables, old cables and high resistance will hurt performance. But be warned, upgrades are addictive. If they weren't this forum wouldnt exist :thumbup:

My DS will cruise 22-23mph on stock 18" tires. But it's got around $2k worth of upgrades on it. Lift kit and bigger tires are in my future if I decide to keep this one around for a while:)

Bigger tires may help you a bit too, but will hurt acceleration a bit but you'll gain top end speed

1997 club car ds 48 volt cart still bit slow with brand new batteries
 

Which drive system do you have? You can tell by the style of forward and reverse switch on a 97 model. Is it a lever that you move back and forth? If so, you have a series cart, and you’d need a new motor and controller along with a solenoid and cables to get a significant speed improvement.


Also, what speed specifically are you seeing now?

Re: 1997 club car ds 48 volt cart still bit slow with brand new batteries
 

Exactly what Luke said. How fast are you going? Download a speed app to your phone if you don't have one. Report speed here.

Re: 1997 club car ds 48 volt cart still bit slow with brand new batteries
 

Also. Your "Buddie's carts"

What do they have?

Re: 1997 club car ds 48 volt cart still bit slow with brand new batteries
 

That's what it is supposed to do. If you hear more than one click something is wrong unless you have an early 80's cart.

Re: 1997 club car ds 48 volt cart still bit slow with brand new batteries
 

I have the switch you slide left to right for forward and reverse with on my series cart. My cables looked fine I was told from the guy I bought the batteries from and I was hoping I would see a significant improvement. I just got left behind bad today. They all had to wait on me and they all were about half pedal riding with me aswell. I will down load an app and report back might not be tomorrow there calling for some bad weather here in NC with hail and tornadoes around the triad area. Any thoughts besides spending slot of money for mods as to why I would be left like that..

Re: 1997 club car ds 48 volt cart still bit slow with brand new batteries
 

Could it be that the bat pack is not fully broken in yet I am only in my 6 cycle of charging or so I was told about 10 to 12 cycles to start getting optimized performance out of the pack.

Re: 1997 club car ds 48 volt cart still bit slow with brand new batteries
 

Sounds like you have a typical late 90s series club car. They are SLOW. Might be time to look into at least a different motor and 4G cables.